Here’s a snippet of dialogue from the ongoing mega popular PBS series “Downton Abbey”—

Robert: “Poor old Edith. We never seem to talk about her.”
Cora: “I’m afraid Edith will be the one taking care of us in our old age.”
Robert: “Oh, what a ghastly prospect.”

Those of us who follow Downton Abbey of course know that Robert and Cora are Lord and Lady Grantham, the parents of Edith. With cheerleaders like that, it’s no wonder that Edith is getting a raw deal!

We want this changed in Season 4 of the series because we’re tired of her sad life. It’s simply too much for one character.

Here’s a girl with a lot of gumption who also wants to find love. She’s not bad looking and has a pleasant personality. Why is she being given such a hard time? She’s endured enough tragic love stories for several characters.

Here’s an example: When an injured veteran claiming to be the late Patrick Crawley winds up at Downton Abbey, which has been turned into a wartime convalescent center, he tells Edith he wants to marry her. His father was a cousin of Robert, Edith’s father, but their relationship is distant enough that they could marry. Still, the family believed that Patrick had drowned on the Titanic and they think he might be an imposter. Patrick eventually bails out of this dysfunctional family, leaving her a note saying simply, “Dear Edith, It was too difficult. I am sorry. P. Gordon.” Gordon was his “temporary” name until his memory returned and he realized he was a Crawley. Of course we only saw Patrick with his head wrapped in bandages and so it was difficult to determine if there was even a family resemblance.

Then there’s Sir Anthony Strallan, family friend whom Edith had long admired. After the war, she tries to resume a relationship with Strallan. He’s been injured and one of his arms is useless. Nonetheless, he eventually proposes to Edith and they set a date for the wedding. She is bursting with happiness, but Strallan leaves her standing at the altar, totally devasted. Unbelievably cruel behavior by a “gentleman.” At the least he could have called Edith and said, “I really can’t do it. Let’s cancel the ceremony.”

Isn’t this enough? How much can one girl take?

But wait. There’s more. Edith is slowly recovering from being jilted by Stallan when she is offered a job at The Sketch, writing on issues facing modern women. Editor Michael

Gregson is almost immediately keen on our Edith. He seems to appreciate her talent, charm and social standing. Guess what? He’s married and his wife is confined to a mental institution. Oh no! Not again! The family tries very hard to dismiss Gregson from Edith’s life, but as Season 3 ends, we’re not sure they’ve succeeded.

One thing we do know for sure, we want our Edith to find happiness. Don’t you?

We’d love to hear how you would like the story to turn for her. We bet you can come up with something that is way better than what this poor creature has been enduring so far.

Ellie Reeve has been writing about pop culture subjects under different bylines on and off for several years. She also paints and writes poetry when she’s not busy raising three kids and two dogs. She hopes one day to get her hair done like Jennifer Aniston along with a mani and pedi.